Designing Science Learning Materials to Foster In-depth Understanding of Content and Scientific Practices Joseph Krajcik University of Michigan Taiwan.

Designing Science Learning Materials to Foster In-depth

Understanding of Content and Scientific Practices

Joseph KrajcikUniversity of Michigan

TaiwanFebruary 3rd, 2007

What we will do today?• Examine the current state of science

education• Explore how to do inquiry without

sacrificing content• Examine the use of explanations as

an exemplar of scientific practices• Examine if students learn• Sum it up.

Science Education Today

• An exciting time– Emerging ideas in science – New ideas on how students learn– Emergence of Inquiry

• A challenging time– Fostering scientific literacy among all learners– Promoting students to pursue STEM degrees– International/global competition – Too much for students to learn– Learning through inquiry remains underused and

challenged– Materials that promote superficial learning

How can we design learning materials that support students in scientific inquiry without sacrificing the science content?

Focus on Learning Goals

• Need to focus on the most important ideas learners will need

• What is it students need to learn to be scientifically literate? To pursue STEM degrees?

Use the Big Ideas of Science

Claim: Learning is facilitated when new and existing knowledge is structured around the enduring or big ideas of the discipline.What big ideas should you pick?

What are Big Ideas• Explanatory power within and across

disciplines• Powerful ways of thinking about the world • Building blocks for further learning• Necessary for intellectual participation in

making individual, social and political decisions regarding science and technology

• Include both content and practice.

Energy

Structure-Function

Ecology/Interrelationships

Particulate Theory Of Matter

Explaining

Modeling

Big Ideas in Science

DiversityForce and Motion

Plate Tectonics

Use and Match Big Ideas with Standards

An example using Benchmarks for Scientific Literacy (Project 2061)

• Big Idea: Particle nature of matter• National Standards from Benchmarks

4D1: Atoms may stick together in well-defined molecules or may be packed together in large arrays. Different arrangements of atoms into groups compose all substances.

Unpacking Standards

1. Interpreting the StandardI. Decompose into related conceptsII. Clarify the different conceptsIII. Consider what other concepts are neededIV. Make links if needed to other standards

2. Consider students prior knowledgeI. Students prior knowledgeII. Possible non-normative ideas

Scientific Inquiry Practices • What are Scientific Inquiry Practices?

• The multiple ways of knowing and doing that scientists use to study the natural world

• Scientific practices include• Asking questions to guide investigations • Creating, revising and using models • Constructing and revising explanations• Using and giving priority to evidence• Designing and performing investigations

Essential Features of Classroom Inquiry and Their

VariationsLearners • Engage in scientifically oriented

questions• Give priority to evidence in

responding to questions• Formulate explanations from evidence• Connect explanations to scientific

knowledge• Communicate and justify explanations

From the National Science Education Standards

Scientific Explanations

• Science is about explaining phenomena

• Stressed in the US science education standards

• Change students’ image and understanding of science

• Foster deeper understanding of important science concepts

Student Difficulties with

ExplanationsEvidence• Students have difficulty using appropriate

evidence and connecting evidence to a claim

• Students typically discount data if the data contradicts their current theory

Reasoning• Most explanations include claims with little

backing

Explanations in Classroom Practice• Although important,

explanations are frequently left out of classroom practice

• Project 2061 review of middle school science materials found that most materials were unlikely to result in students developing understandings of key learning goals

Unpacking Inquiry Standards

• A Framework for Scientific Explanations

– Claim: a conclusion about a problem

– Evidence: scientific data that supports the claim

– Reasoning: a justification that shows why the data counts as evidence to support the claim and includes appropriate scientific principles

– Consider alternative explanations

Creating Learning Performances

• What are Learning Performances? – Describes what it means for learners to

“understand” a scientific idea– Clarifies how the subject matter knowledge is

used in reasoning about scientific questions and phenomena

• Why Learning Performances?– “Know” or “understand” is too vague

• Use scientific inquiry practices to specify what students should do

Content Inquiry LearningStandard Practice

PerformanceContent Standard Inquiry Standard Learning Performance When substances interact to form new substances, the elements composing them combine in new ways. In such recombinations, the properties of the new combinations may be very different from those of the old

Develop…explanationsÉ us ing evidence. (NRC, 1996, A: 1/4, 5-8) Think critically and logically to make the relationships between evidence and explanation. (NRC, 1996, A: 1/5, 5-8)

LP 12 - Students construct scientific explanations stating a claim whether a chemical reaction occurred, evidence in the form of properties, and reasoning that a chemical reaction is a process in which old substances interact to form new substances with different properties than the old substances.

Learning Performances

Learning Performance

Content Standard plus Inquiry Standard

Assessment Learning Task

Instructional Strategies

1. Make the inquiry framework explicit2. Discuss the rationale behind the

inquiry practice3. Model the inquiry practice4. Provide multiple opportunities to

perform the inquiry practice5. Have students critique their work and

the work of other students 6. Provide students with feedback

Substance and Property Explanation Task

Examine the following data table:

Density Color Mass Melting Point

Liquid 1 0.93 g/cm3 no color 38 g -98 C

Liquid 2 0.79 g/cm3 no color 38 g 26 C

Liquid 3 13.6 g/cm3 silver 21 g -39 C

Liquid 4 0.93 g/cm3 no color 16 g -98 C

Write a scientific explanation that states whether any of the liquids are the same substance.

Student Response for Substance Explanation

QuickTime™ and aTIFF (LZW) decompressor

are needed to see this picture.

Were students involved in inquiry?

• Did you engaging in working with big ideas?• Did you construct a scientific explanation?

• Did you give priority to evidence?

Do students learn??

Participants

• Students completed identical pre- and posttest measures. Three open-ended items were explanations.

• Independent raters scored the items. Inter-rater reliability was

97% for claim, 95% for evidence, and 97% for reasoning.

Site Urban A Town B Urban C Suburb D Total

Schools 8 1 1 1 11

Teachers 9 2 1 1 13

Classrooms 32 4 2 3 41

Students 1026 61 51 59 1197

7th grade science teachers and students

Results: Student LearningStudent Learning of Scientific Explanation (n=835)

0

0.5

1

1.5

2

2.5

3

3.5

4

4.5

5

Whole Explanation Claim Evidence Reasoning

Stu

den

t Te

st

Ach

ievem

en

t

Pretest

Posttest

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The Big Message• To design materials that support

students in learning scientific inquiry without sacrificing the science content– Focus on learning goals– Unpack the learning goals– Create learning performances– Develops aligned lessons and

assessments

Thanks to manyIQWST Development and

Research TeamColleagues at Northwestern

University, MSU & Project 2061Many teachers with whom we

workNational Science Foundation Investigating and Questioning our World

through Science and Technology Project Center for Curriculum Materials in Science

More Information• Join the IQWST Team• Slides will be posted at

– http://www-personal.umich.edu/~krajcik/Papers.htm

• Contact me– [email protected]

• See my web sites– www.hice.org/– www.hice.org/IQWST

Hyperlink Slides

“Inquiry into authentic questions generated from student experience is the central strategy for teaching science. Teachers focus inquiry predominately on real phenomena, in classrooms, outdoors, or in laboratory settings, where students are given investigations or guided toward fashioning investigations that are demanding but within their capacities.”

Emergence of Inquiry: the Preferred Method

Stain-free pants

cotton fibers“nano-whiskers”

{10 nm long

New NanoScience Ideas

Whiskers create an air cushion that keeps fabric dry but “whiskers” are so short the fabric still is soft to the touch.

Nanoscience will push us to use new phenomena in science education as well as push us in helping students understand the ideas!

Essential Features of Classroom Inquiry and Their Variations

Essential Feature Variation

Learner engages in scientifically oriented questions

Learner poses a question

Learner selects among questions, poses new questions

Leaner sharpens or clarifies question provided by teacher, materials, or other sources

Learner engages in question provided by teacher, materials, or other sources

Learner gives priority to evidence in responding to questions

Learner determines what constitutes evidence and collects it.

Learner directed to collect certain data

Learner given data and asked to analyze

Learner given data and told how to analyze

Learner formulates explanations from evidence

Learner formulates explanation after summarizing evidence

Learner guided in process of formulating explanation from evidence

Learner given possible ways to use evidence to formulate explanation

Learner provided with evidence

Learner connects explanations to scientific knowledge

Learner independently examines other resources and forms the links to explanations

Learner directed toward areas and sources of scientific knowledge

Learner given possible connections

Learner Communicates and justifies explanations

Learner forms reasonable and logical arguments to communicate explanation

Learner coached in development of communications

Learner provided broad guidelines to sharpen communications

Learner given steps and procedures for communications

More-------------------Amount of Learner Self Direction---------------------------------------------Less

Less------------------------Amount of Direction from Teacher or Material--------------------------------------------More

Adapted from the National Science Education Standards

Learner gives priority to evidence in responding to questions

• Learner determines what constitutes evidence and collects it.

• Learner directed to collect certain data

• Learner given data and asked to analyze

• Learner given data and told how to analyze

• Greater amount of student direction

• Lesser

Unpacking Standards• Standard from SFAA: When substances interact to form

new substances, the elements composing them combine in new ways. In such recombinations, the properties of the new combinations may be very different from those of the old (AAAS, 1990, p.47).

• Unpacked Standard: Substances have distinct properties and are made of one material throughout. (Prior knowledge of properties is necessary). A chemical reaction is a process where new substances are made from old substances. One type of chemical reaction is when two substances are mixed together and they interact to form new substance(s). The properties of the new substance(s) are different from the old substance(s).

Writing AssessmentsCarlos wants to know if two liquids will react with each other. He uses an eyedropper to get a sample from the two liquids. He takes some measurements of the two samples. Then he stirs the two liquids together and heats them. After stirring and heating the liquids, they form two separate layers Ń layer X and layer Y. Carlos uses an eyedropper to get a sample from each layer. He takes measurements of each sample. Here are his results:

Measurements

Melting Point

Volume Solubility in water

Density

Sample A -7.9 ℃ 2.00 cm3 Yes 0.96 g/cm3

Before stirring

& heating Sample B -89.5 ℃ 2.00 cm3 Yes 0.81

g/cm3

Layer X -91.5 ℃ 2.00 cm3 No 0.87 g/cm3

After stirring

& heating Layer y 0.0 ℃ 2.00 cm3 Yes 1.00

g/cm3 Write a scientific explanation that states whether a chemical reaction occurred.

Student Investigation: Did a chemical reaction occur?

Properties

Color Hardness Solubility in Water Density

Melting Point

Copper Penny

Bronze Very hard Not soluble 8.96 g/cm3

1084 ℃

Vinegar (Acid)

no color liquid soluble

1.04 g/cm3

17 C

Solid on

Penny Green Soft sol id Soluble

1.88 g/cm3

115 ℃

AfterExperiment

BeforeExperiment

Ideas from Learning Theory

• Expert Knowledge Organization

• Contexualized

• Relate to Prior Knowledge

• Active Construction

• Community of Learners

• Cognitive Tools

• NRC B5-8: 1A: A substance has characteristic properties, such as density, a boiling point, and solubility, all of which are independent of the amount of the sample.